Sun Mote Copse i've seen her kick in a door before.

It wasn't often that Sugar came to her parents with a question they couldn't answer, so Finley's soft, "I don't know," gave the youth pause. She glanced at her mother, noticing the way her eyes and mouth didn't quite match, and began to slow her step. She came to a full stop at the next few words from her dam's mouth.

The idea of leaving her parents, siblings and the copse had never really held any appeal for Sugar. She'd been aware that some came and went ever since developing proper cognizance, though her own tight-knit family was nothing if not steadfast. Sometimes, she wished Crow and Penn would take a hike—and she'd get her wish, to her sorrow, some weeks from now—but she couldn't imagine being apart from Elwood, Finley and, particularly, Avery.

But Sugar didn't refute her mother's observation, instead asking, "Are they together out there? Fiadh and Clover, I mean? And the others?" Somehow, the idea of striking out into the world was a lot less objectionable to Sugar, as long as she could take Avery with her. Not that she was planning anything of the sort.